The Third Future
by wishingforatypewriter
Summary: What if the Eclipse plan had failed in an unimaginable way? A world overrun by dragons was no place to raise a child. But no matter what fate befell the wizards themselves, the baby had to survive.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail

August, X791

It had actually been a bit disappointing when after all the incessant panic, all the bone chilling warnings, only three dragons emerged from the eclipse gate. The beasts were bested with relative ease and after the post-games banquet, all the wizards returned to their guilds and the spectators to their homes and places of business.

A sense of overwhelming pride overtook the Kingdom of Fiore and all of its inhabitants. In the days and weeks following the aborted dragon invasion, mage and shopkeeper alike saw themselves as invincible - powerful beyond measure. After all, what could possibly break down a people that defeated mythology's most frightening creatures?

And not a single soul could have anticipated that this great victory was nothing more than a fluke.

The first attack - the real one, that is - wilted Fiore's blooming capital while all its most powerful wizards were miles away. The devastation was as swift as it was shocking; the city reduced to ash and rubble and its citizens, those lucky enough to escape with their lives, ran off as a classless, nameless mass with nothing more than the clothes on their backs to tell the tale.

The nightmare had returned, ten thousand strong, and they were all but executed in their sleep.

November, X792

The first attempt to retake Crocus and send the dragons back through the eclipse gate.

The result: complete failure.

Three dragon slayers, slayed by dragons. Gone but never forgotten.

A team without its namesake.

A promise to return, forever unfulfilled.

Countless adventures never to be discovered.

Hope? The very thought of it all but irretrievably lost.

March, X793

As she sat at Sting's desk, balancing Sabertooth's expenses for the previous month, it dawned on Yukino how bleak her situation actually was.

"You do realize," Rufus began, standing in the office's doorway, "that only a guild master should be obligated to deal with such dreadful jobs."

"He'll be exhausted when he returns." She didn't put it past Sting to try and complete some menial task after a dragon slaying campaign. He was still in possession of that false kind of energy of those driven by their remorse.

"You always say when instead of if," the Make mage remarked. "I've never known you as one to rely on good luck."

"There is no luck involved, Rufus-sama," she replied, somewhat testily. This was not something she particularly wanted to discuss. "Sting-sama and Rogue-sama are incredibly strong."

"Natsu Dragneel and Gajeel Redfox were even stronger than they are," the blond pointed out. "And what, exactly, became of them? It escapes my memory."

Yukino shut her eyes, thinking of how worn Lucy had seemed the last time she saw her. Hollow, like the very soul had been sucked from her body. And Levy had been simply inconsolable. It hadn't occurred to her before then how physically taxing perpetually missing someone could be.

"What is it that you wish to accomplish, Rufus-sama, besides mocking my acts of courtesy?"

Courtesy? Was that what they were calling it now? The minstrel laughed tersely. "As your closest friend who hasn't yet died emotionally, or otherwise, I want you to tell that tasteless idiot that you love him; or at the very least that you're carrying his child, before things manage to get any worse than they are now."

The celestial mage paled considerably. "How do you...I mean, I'm not." She pressed a hand against her abdomen protectively. "I can't be. Not now, when the world is-"

"You are aware that this is not something you can simply wish away?" He gazed at her intently from behind his mask. Somewhere between the pool parties and collaborations on jobs, he'd come to care for the young woman like a sister. "Although there are ways to terminate this...circumstance. If you act quickly, that is."

"I know, you're right," she rested her head in her hands, eyes straining against a downpour of tears.

"But?" He prompted.

"But," the woman continued, "I need time." She needed to come to terms with it herself before she told him. Otherwise, she'd be a mess.

"Pity," the red minstrel adjusted his hat. "That seems to be the only thing that we don't have."

Later that night Yukino stood at her window with a steaming mug of chamomile tea, mulling over her nakama's words. Though usually a simple glance skyward would uplift her, on this particular night the familiar faces of stars in the sky did little to soothe her worries.

However, the sight of a certain dragon slayer turning the corner onto her street did the trick.

"Oi, Yukino! Can I come up?"

"Of course!" She called down, for once unconcerned with the her volume. The neighbors would be fine.

Just as she turned to head downstairs and unlock the door, the dragon slayer climbed up onto her balcony.

The celestial mage rolled her eyes at this. "Sting-sama," she sighed. "My landlord is going to think you're an intruder-" she was silenced by a pair of lips pressed against her own. "W-what was that for?"

"I guess I missed you." He shot her a smirk that heated every iota of her.

"Me too." She shut her eyes, burying her face into the crook of his neck. Every day she read about the dragons and witnessed the clues of their devastation in her daily life. It was like a knot of anxiety uncoiled within her every time he returned.

"Where's Lector?" she questioned, trying to change the subject to something less emotional.

"He went home with Rogue and Frosch," he explained. "I went to the guild first to finish up a few things but everything was done already."

At this Yukino shrugged, trying hard to seem inconspicuous. "Maybe you miscalculated the workload."

"Maybe someone's gotten better at forging my signature," he 'speculated.'

She giggled at that. It took a lot of practice to make her handwriting that sloppy.

"You don't have to keep doing my paperwork, Yukino." He didn't want to take advantage of her.

"It's alright," she said, picking up her mug and leading the conversation inside. "I don't have much else to do."

He smirked, lightly tugging at the loose belt of her robe. "Allow me to entertain you."

Yukino sighed, knowing exactly where this conversation would lead; straight to her bed. "Well," she nipped at the side of his neck. "I have been a bit bored."

Even as she was led to the bed to have every inch of her felt and fondled, a nagging voice in her head (which sounded suspiciously like Rufus) warned that she couldn't go on like this forever.

Still, once Sting's tongue swiped across her collarbone all thoughts of anything beyond the here and now escaped her. The pale haired mage pulled at his shirt, signaling in her quiet way that she wanted it gone.

After a moment's hesitation he complied, warning, "Don't overreact."

The question of what on earthland he was talking about stilled on the tip of her tongue when she saw three long gashes across his chest. Dragon claws.

"Oh my..." She gasped, covering her mouth. "Hold on, I think I have a first aid kit somewhere." Mirajane had warned her to always keep one around.

Sting sighed. "You're overreacting."

"I'm not." She scurried off to the bathroom to retrieve the first aid kit. She sat back on the bed and popped it open. "I think I'm reacting very reasonably, given the circumstances."

"It's not as bad as it looks." He knew how prone she was to bouts of pessimism.

Yukino bit her lip and wordlessly continued to dress his wounds, not trusting herself to respond. Her tears had not solved anything thus far in life so she saw no merit in shedding any more of them.

"It'll make a nice battle scar someday."

"That is not at all the point." She laughed, all the while loathing herself for blushing at the thought.

"C'mon, I can brag about it to my kids someday," he joked. "How many dads can say they've offed dragons?"

Her hands stilled completely as he said this and she felt a chill that had very little to do with the weather. Casual as the comment was, it was more of a sign than she could ever hope to receive.

"Sting-sama." The pale haired woman's voice sounded distant and foreign, even to her own ears. "We..." She struggled to find the words."We've done something incredibly stupid."

"How stupid?" The dragon slayer draped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. "On a scale from one to Orga's haircut?"

Yukino looked up at him with amber eyes welling with frightened, damnable tears which refused to stay in their ducts no matter how much she tried to rationalize them away.

She swallowed thickly. There would be no returning those words once they were out. "I'm having a baby."

For exactly one tenth of a second his face showed that he was just as nervous as she was, and then he remembered who he was supposed to be and told her that it would be fine. "All it means is that me and Rouge have gotta kill these dragons faster."

And without that fleeting moment's hesitation forever etched into her memory, she sincerely could have believed it.

**Author's Notes: **Another StingYu fic. This one will involve some Rogura as well. Also, the story may get pretty sad at points. Thanks for reading, everyone!


	2. Chapter 2

May, X793

If all the people in the world were to be sorted into two categories, it would be those who act and those who are acted upon. Because the latter sect is altogether too dependent on chance, the wisest among us have always been those willing to make the first move.

It is for this reason, precisely, that Kagura Mikazuchi started planning as soon as she heard of the first dragon attack. By the time Fairy Tail's Salamander fell in Crocus, she and the other members of Mermaid a Heel were already moving civilians into their safe haven.

The women, with the help of a few stone-make mages, hollowed out part of a mountain range in less than half a year. Now, as the situation in Fiore grew bleaker by the day more and more people were looking to join their small colony.

"Risley. Arania." Kagura greeted her nakama as they entered the underground guild hall. "How are things outside?"

"We found a small nest about seven miles east of us," the green haired woman informed. "Only eggs and fledglings."

"They've all been dealt with," Risley assured. "We chubby girls know how to handle such things."

"Be chubby by yourself," Arania rebuked with a laugh. The thread mage was quite pleased with her slim figure. "But she's right. Nothing was left alive in those caves."

Millianna frowned almost imperceptibly. While eradicating the dragons was clearly necessary for their survival, the notion of murdering babies of any species made her stomach turn a bit.

"Has there been any word of the dragon slayers?" The composed swordswoman would usually refrain from asking such questions, but today curiosity seemed to get the better of her.

A taunting smirk broke out on Arania's face. "Why, Kagura? Wanna know if Rogue is in town?"

The dark haired mage crossed her arms and turned up her nose ever so slightly. "How absurd."

"I think it's cute!" Millianna gushed. "Kagura-chan is worried about her lover, right?"

"He and I were hardly lovers," she defended, almost too quickly. "We had a one night stand nearly two years ago and haven't heard from one another since." Granted, if not for the dragons they might have chosen to extend their rendezvous.

Arania plopped down on the couch and crossed one leg over the other. "From what I remember, it was more like a three night stand."

"Oh, stop torturing her," Risley laughed. "Her head's about to explode." The curvaceous woman helped herself to a handful of candies from the bowl on the coffee table. "Last I've heard, those twin dragons were just in a major battle. It was only a few towns away from here."

Kagura nodded. That would account for the recent influx of people entering their community.

"Maybe they'll pay us a visit," Millianna purred. "The blond one is super cute."

"It's a miracle that those two still have their lives," Arania added. Since the deaths of the fire, iron, and lightning dragon slayers Sabertooth has been the main force defending Fiore. "The little one from Fairy Tail has been traveling around, healing the wounded."

"No one's heard from the fugitive," Beth interjected as she came in. "Though I can't blame him for running. Things are getting pretty bad out there."

Kagura's face remained impassive despite her newly lightened mood. Rogue was still in this world, breathing the same oxygen that kept her blood flowing day after dreary day. And with him her hope for a different future still struggled to survive.

The only problem with this was that hope is the greatest folly of those who are acted upon.

* * *

"You know, Rogue," Sting started as they made their way through a dense forest on the way back to Sabertooth. "I think we're getting pretty good at this."

Of course, he was referring to the increasing ease with which they could eliminate dragons.

Choosing not to voice his opinion on that matter, Rogue opted to change the subject. "The people in that town seemed to have somewhere to go."

It was a great thing, but it didn't happen very often. Those who escaped the attacks with their lives often succumbed to hunger and poverty in the following weeks.

"Your ex-girlfriend's preparing for the apocalypse. We're trying to prevent it." He glanced up at the sky to make sure no horde of dragons was gliding across the horizon. Doing so was second nature for those in that business. "I wonder who's right in the end."

"Sting-kun is, of course!" Lector butted in.

"Fro thinks so, too!"

The was another pause on the black haired slayer's part. "I don't have any ex-girlfriends...but if you're referring to Kagura, I've never known her to be wrong."

He'd never known her much at all, really, but life had its mysteries. All the years he watched her compete in the Grand Magic Games had taught him nothing compared to the two or three nights they spent holed up together in a hotel room.

Her expert swordsmanship left no clue of the deftness with which she wielded her hips and her lips, or the way she shivered when touched in a particular way.

It had certainly been a long time.

"Fro wants to see Kagura again!" The jumpsuit clad exceed exclaimed. "She's really nice even though she seemed scary at first."

"Forget that," Lector grinned in anticipation. "I wanna see the underground hideouts they built."

Rogue shook his head at their antics. "I'm not against it," he allowed. "Mermaid Heel's base isn't far from here." It was a day's walk away if they made haste, perhaps three if they took a more leisurely pace.

Sting stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Can't. Yukino was sick as shit before we left last time." It had been nearly impossible for him to leave her all alone when she was puking her guts out every other hour. "I should see how she is."

"Of course." Rogue nodded understandingly. "That certainly takes priority." Knowing Kagura, she wouldn't be disappointed. He was probably the last thing on her mind right now.

"Is Yukino gonna lay an egg?" Frosch wondered aloud.

"No, you idiot," Lector sighed. "Yukino-kun is a human. The egg is inside of her. When it cracks, a little person is gonna come out of her belly button. Everyone knows that."

"Oh." She rubbed her head thoughtfully. "How did the egg get there?"

Lector paused. "I don't know...but I'm pretty sure it's Sting-kun's fault."

"Fro thinks so, too!"

* * *

June, X793

It was roughly three thirty in the morning when Sting was woken by the sound of faint sniffling. The white dragon slayer had never been a light sleeper, even less so since fighting off the invasion started taking up more time and energy than was at his disposal.

Nonetheless, there was something about Yukino's dainty high pitched crying that told his brain he had to get up.

Groggily, he followed the sound to the kitchen where he found her sitting on the floor next to the refrigerator. Yukino's head rested on top of her knees.

"Hey," Sting knelt beside her. "Hey, what's wrong? Are you hurt somewhere?"

"Sting...sama." She blinked, staring up at him with still teary amber eyes. "I'm so," she sniffed, "sorry I woke you. I'm just being (sniffle) silly (sob). G-go back to sleep."

Sighing, he pulled her into an embrace with his chin resting on top of her fluffy silver hair. "What happened?" he asked after she'd calmed down a bit.

She wiped at her eyes. "Well, I woke up a few minutes ago and for some reason I felt really hungry, so I decided to make myself an omelet. Then I came in here and got everything ready, but I forgot that I ran out of feta cheese yesterday. And on top of that, last week when I went shopping I bought prosciutto instead of pancetta by mistake."

Yukino looked down, ashamed that she got worked up over something so petty. "And now I woke you up for no reason even though you look so tired. I'm sorry. I'm not usually like this," she sighed.

"It's alright, Yukino." He ruffled her hair playfully. "You've gotta eat, right? I'll go to the store for you."

"You don't have to do that," she said, although her rumbling stomach begged to differ. "The closest store that would be open now is fifteen blocks away."

Sting squeezed the bridge of his nose, sighing. "I know."

Had it been anyone else in the world he would have been back in bed the second she said omelet, but it was Yukino. This was the woman who did his paperwork and massaged his sore muscles and took care of him when he was sick. What kind of jerk would he be if he didn't accommodate her and her cravings? "You want anything else?"

She bit her lip sheepishly. "Well, I wouldn't mind some chocolate croissants...and pomegranate seeds. Oh...and a baked potato."

"Yeah, yeah. You are so lucky you're pregnant." He smirked before heading to pick up his clothes.

"Thank you Sting-sama," she called after him. "The baby says thank you, too!"

A little less than an hour later, Yukino sat on the couch nibbling on her pomegranate seeds while Sting made her omelet.

"Here ya' go." He handed her a plate. "Even though I still don't see what the difference between prosciutto and pancetta is."

Yukino sighed. "Well, as of now, prosciutto is one of those things that I like but the baby doesn't." That list seemed to be growing by the day. "Pancetta is still okay."

Sting smirked at this. "Kid seems to love giving you a hard time."

"I wonder where he gets that trait from...if it's actually a he, anyway."

The young guild master joined her on the couch. "Did you want a girl or a boy? I don't think you ever said."

The celestial mage shrugged nonchalantly. "The gender doesn't really matter to me. I just want the baby to be happy, healthy, and safe."

Sting looked down at her, oddly feeling as though he'd come across something rare and precious. "You know, you actually sound like a good mom there."

She shook her head dismissively at this. "A good mother would not be bringing a child into this kind of world. Anything could happen."

"Don't worry about it. Little Aki or Fuyu's gonna have an entire guild protecting 'em."

Yukino couldn't help but laugh. There was so much about that sentence she could chose to comment on but two things stood out above the rest.

"Aki and Fuyu?" she repeated incredulously. "Fall and winter? Sting-sama, while I understand the depth of your reverence for Natsu-sama, isn't that a bit much?"

No, she would not be naming her child after seasons. Under any circumstance.

"C'mon." He scratched his head, smiling guiltily. "Lector thought it would be cool."

Yukino gave him a look that told him it wasn't, but he was absolutely adorable for thinking so. "And besides, those are both very feminine names."

He looked away from her, just a bit too quickly. "I guess."

She raised an incredulous eyebrow. "Could it be that you want it to be a girl?"

"I mean, after all that stuff you said about it not being important…"

"You do!" she exclaimed. "I knew it all along."

"How?" He wondered aloud, pulling the celestial mage closer to him.

"Well, the collection of stuffed animals you've been accumulating was the first clue." A pale yellow dragon and a white tiger were the newest additions. "I think Lector would like a little sister," she said as she snuggled into his chest.

"Yeah?" Sting felt his eyes growing heavier by the minute. The only thing that kept him awake up until this point had been his concern for the petite woman beside him.

"Of course. Look how he is with Frosch. He'd love it." And Yukino couldn't imagine any child not loving growing up with two flying feline companions. "You know, I haven't really thought about it much but where is the baby going to sleep?" They were both apartment dwellers, after all.

"We'll just...figure it out..." His eyes weren't even open at this point. The dragon slayer already had an idea, but couldn't manage to articulate it before sleep overtook him.

"I suppose you're right. That isn't something that can be settled at five in the morning." Yukino sighed, feeling something close to secure for the first time in months. "Do you remember the last time we were up all night like this?"

No response.

"Sting-sama?" She glanced behind her to see the dragon slayer fast asleep. Clear on his face was the exhaustion he hid so well during waking hours.

Yukino's amber eyes softened as she gazed upon him. Leaning forward, she pressed a kiss against his right cheek. "You always overdo it," she whispered fondly.

He came back from fighting indomitable monsters and doted on her as though she were the only thing in the world. The blond was so good at the act, even she started to believe it sometimes. "You're only human, you know?"

But the undiniable truth was that he wasn't only human. He was a dragon slayer; the only thing standing between life and complete destruction. And as long as there were dragons in Fiore the luxury of human limits would elude him.

**Author's Notes:** Well, this is the second chapter. I'm going to try to update as soon as I can, but college is starting and it may be difficult to write as frequently as I'd like to. Please try to be patient with me if any complications arise. Please review if you liked it, or if there's something you think I can improve upon. Constructive criticism is always welcome.

Anyway, thank you for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

August, X793

"Sting-sama?" The nearly six months pregnant celestial wizard sighed as she was led blindfolded through the city streets. Long purposeless walks did not exactly agree with her currently swollen feet. "Where are you taking me?"

"You'll see."

"It's a surprise, Yukino-kun!" Lector encouraged. "We can't just tell you."

"Fro wants to be surprised, too!" the green exceed proclaimed.

"But you know what it is already," Lector pointed out, mildly annoyed.

"Oh."

In a few minutes he stopped her. Yukino tried, unsuccessfully, to peek around the blindfold. "Sting-sama, for the baby's sake I hope you're not planning on pushing me into a body of water."

"Would I do something like that?"

She could hear the smirk in the cocky dragon slayer's voice. "Yes."

"Fro agrees," the jumpsuit clad cat chimed in.

"Sheesh, tough crowd." He shook his head. "But, no. You get a free pass on all poolside harassment until the kid comes out."

"There are small miracles," Yukino quipped.

After holding the suspense another moment or so, Sting removed the blindfold. The celestial mage's eyes brightened to the likeness of the stars she wielded. Before her stood a stylish townhouse in her favorite part of the city.

She was suddenly arrested by an overwhelming sense of elation. "Sting-sama...how did you..."

"You must recall," Rufus began as he opened the door to beckon them inside. "That he doesn't understand a single thing about aesthetics." He tipped his hat forward with an air of self-importance. "But I suppose that's what nakama are for."

The masked minstrel ignored his spiky haired comrade's death glare as he continued to lead Yukino about the house. Everything was gorgeous, from the island in the kitchen to the balcony in the master bedroom, but nothing warmed her heart more than setting foot in the baby's room.

The walls were painted a peaceful pale yellow and white drapes fluttered in the windows. Tiny Sabertooth insignias had been sewed onto them with gold thread.

To the far right stood a bookshelf packed tight with children's stories, one of them a manuscript penned by Lucy before the dragon attacks. Next to it was a toy box filled to the brim with stuffed animals.

"Rufus-sama, you did all of this?" she asked, giddily astonished by it all.

"It's my pleasure," he assured. "Spending other people's money in abundance has always been a passion of mine." It only helped that the couple commonly erred on the side of extravagance.

Sting sighed, suddenly reminded of the hundreds of millions of jewels he put into the memory make mage's hands for this project. Goodbye life savings.

"You also have me to thank for that engagement ring," Rufus went on. "I thought you'd appreciate the pear cut diamond as opposed to-"

"E-engagement ring," she repeated breathlessly.

"Rufus-kun!" Lector admonished. "You messed it all up."

"Fro thinks so, too!" The exceed crossed her arms indignantly, without really knowing what was going on.

The make mage shuffled in his boots, looking uncharacteristically diffident. "Well, I...I apologize." He cleared his throat awkwardly. "I just assumed that with you and Rogue leaving tomorrow you would have done it already."

"Tomorrow?" Yukino had no idea he'd be off so soon. The twin dragons had only been back in town for two days.

"God dammit, Rufus." Sting was a hair's width away from unleashing some ancient monster murdering magic on him and his stupid hat. "Just get out."

"I don't recall you ever having a better idea," and with that he hastily took his leave.

"We should go too," Lector took hold of Frosch's hand and pulled the green exceed toward the doorway.

"Aww...but Fro wants to watch them be romantic."

"Oh, we're still gonna watch," the other cat assured. "Just from a distance."

Sting sighed, glancing over at that pale haired woman who was tactfully avoiding his eyes. He was actually going to try to be romantic about this. But now that was ruined. "I had a plan…" He scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "Do you think you can just forget everything you heard in the last few minutes?"

"Not very effectively," she admitted, smiling softly. "When were you going to tell me?"

"Well, I was gonna wait until the sun was setting and then act like I dropped something so-"

"Not that." Yukino bit her lip, trying to stay somewhat cross with him. Not that it would ever work. "You're leaving tomorrow?"

The dragon slayer glanced at her in disbelief. "Yes," he began cautiously. "But is that really the part of it you're interested in?"

The amber eyed woman sighed shakily. It was all she could do not to faint on the spot at the notion that this man actually wanted to be with her in such a permanent context. He always knew just how to get around her inquiries. "Well...I…"

"Can do much better than a jerk like me, I know," The young guild master was only half joking. "But if you can live with it at all, I want to marry you, Yukino." He drew a small black box from his pants pocket.

"Oh my goodness." The celestial mage's cheeks were tinted an amorous shade of pink. She could scarcely breathe. "I'm just dreadfully in love with you, aren't I?" she said, more to herself than to him. "But I don't want you to feel obligated because I'm pregnant."

"C'mon." He flipped the box open and showed her a flawless pear cut diamond set in a gold band. "We were going to anyway, even if the world hadn't gone to shit the way it did."

Yukino smiled. "Even if Kagura-sama actually tried to force me to join Mermaid Heel?" she laughed at the memory.

Sting faltered momentarily. "There is something wrong with that woman...and with Rogue, for that matter." To this day he did not know what possessed his friend to get into it with the intimidating mermaid. "But still, she wasn't getting you from me."

Yukino bit the inside of her cheek blushing madly. "My hero," she said in a half teasing way.

Suddenly Frosh flew down from her and Lector's hiding spot and landed on the celestial mage's shoulder. "Yukino," the exceed called, looking up at her excitedly. "Is that a yes?"

"Don't interrupt, Frosh," Lector chided. "Sorry, Sting-kun."

"Of course it's a yes." Yukino held out her hand and he slid the ring onto her third finger.

"Alright!" Lector cheered. "When's the wedding?"

The celestial mage looked dubiously at her prominent baby bump. "Hopefully sometime when I can fit into a nice dress again."

The fox-like exceed nodded knowingly. "The egg hasn't cracked in your belly button yet."

"What?"

"Trust me, you don't want to know," Sting told his new fiance.

"Can Fro be a bridesmaid?"

"Can we invite Carla?"

"Will there be a big cake?"

"Sting-kun, we need to plan the bachelor party!"

"Fro wants to help pick the flowers!"

At that point specifically the nuptial arrangements became largely about the exceeds.

* * *

October, X793

Yukino was restless.

With the changing of the seasons the days grew colder, the nights longer. More time was left to lie awake as a blend of anxiety and the stirrings of the little life within her stole her sleep. It had been a little over a month since Sting left last, and she hadn't heard much news.

"Are you worried, too?" Yukino was genuinely surprised when the baby delivered a soft, somewhat impatient kick in response.

"I see." She smiled gently, gazing down at her stomach. "But it can't be helped. Try to be patient with him...and with me."

"HEY YUKINO!" She heard a voice call from outside her building.

Immediately, she rushed to the window. Although it was not the one she'd been expecting, it had been so long, entirely too long since she heard that voice.

"Lucy-sama!" She exclaimed once she caught sight of the blonde. "Mirajane-sama, as well?"

"Yukino!" Fairy Tail's barmaid waved up at her. "Have you been well?"

"We're here, too!" Cana said as she and Levy made their way up the block.

"Come upstairs!" The Saber mage waved them up, delighted. She hadn't seen any of her female friends in months.

"Guys, what is all this?" She asked when everyone was settled in her living room. Train service was all but nonexistent now that many of the major rail lines had been destroyed. It must have been quite the chore to make the trip from Magnolia.

"It's your baby shower!" Mira exclaimed. "My name is Mirajane. It's nice to meet you," she said directly to the baby.

"Will the baby have your last name or his? Or will you do that cute hyphenated thing?" Levy wondered aloud.

The silver haired mage rubbed at her protruding stomach absently. "We're both taking his last name." At this time she showed her friends the sparkling pear cut diamond ring.

"It's flawless," the writing mage gushed.

"I know. Imagine the amount of booze you could buy with that."

"Really, Cana?" Lucy laughed

"Well, she'll be thinking that way when the kid is keeping her up all night."

"Let's not have her think about that now," Lucy advised, waving off the comment. "It's time for presents."

"You guys didn't have to get me anything," the pale haired mage insisted. "It's enough that you're here."

"But we already did." Mirajane gave a gentle smile. She pressed something small wrapped tightly in cloth into Yukino's hands.

"I'm not sure if you and Sting will want that for the baby," the barmaid began as she unwrapped it. "But I thought you should have it anyway."

Yukino's heart skipped a beat when she realized what it was. "A-a dragon lacrima." Always a rarity, they were nearly impossible to get a hold of in these times. In desperation people had gone as far as trying to sell their body parts in exchange for them.

"A memento of Laxus," Mira clarified, expertly keeping her composure. "He intended it for his own child someday. But in light of...recent events, I think he'd want it this way."

"Next," Cana said, trying to lighten the mood a bit. "I'm gonna do a reading to tell you what the kid is. It must be a pain not knowing the gender." She dexterously slapped three cards onto the table and with a touch of her magic they started to shift. "Put your hand on the one in the middle."

Yukino did as she asked and slowly, the two outer cards started to change color. After a minute, they settled on a healthy shade of pink.

"Girl," Cana declared. "My real gift was this bottle of aged wine but…"

"She drank it on the way here," Mira informed.

"Did you think it would be a girl?" Lucy questioned.

Yukino smirked despite herself. "I knew it," she affirmed. "He always gets what he wants."

Levy presented a collection of books and a pair of child sized wind reading glasses. After this, as Lucy gave her a tiny charm bracelet from the celestial spirit world, Sting returned from his latest dragon slaying campaign.

He entered through the window, as had become almost habitual.

"Sting-sama!" Yukino's eyes lit up. "Look who came to see me!"

"Oh, Fairy Tail! How have you guys been?"

"Hello, Sting," Mirajane smiled saccharinely. "I've been fine. Just wondering how you impregnated Yukino and asked for her hand in marriage without thinking to first gain my consent." Her demonic aura was slowly seeping out.

"S-Sting-kun, I think she means business," Lector croaked, paws shaking.

Cana sighed, "Mira, we've been over this. You're not her legal guardian."

"I know but...they just grow up so fast!"

Sting shook his head at their antics. Even in the face of disaster, Fairy Tail was still completely over the top.

"You seem to have your hands full." He smirked at Yukino. "I still have some things to look over at the guild, so I'll see you later tonight."

The short haired mage frowned slightly at this. "You should rest. Or at least eat something first," she said, knowing that he'd work well into the next day. "I can make something quickly."

"Look at her being a wife already," Cana pointed out, just loud enough for the couple to hear.

"I know," Levy added. "It's like something out of a novel."

"You worry too much." Sting pressed a kiss against his fiance's forehead. "Have fun." And with that, he took his leave again.

"A young and attractive master for sure," Levy quoted. "Laki and Kinana would have loved to see that, huh Lu-chan...Lu-chan?" The petite mage looked up to see her friend get up and excuse herself to the restroom. Her eyes clearly glistened with sorrowful tears.

"It can't be helped," Mirajane said sadly, after she'd run off. "After all, it was around this time last year."

Yukino nodded understandingly. "I'll go see if she wants to talk."

"She doesn't," Levy sighed. "She never talks about it. It's almost as though she can't."

But the blonde's fellow celestial wizard was willing to try anyway. She knew too well how it felt to wallow in one's own sorrows. All alone.

"Lucy-sama?" Yukino knocked tentatively on the bathroom door before entering. "Are you alright?"

The blonde wiped at her eyes. "I'm sorry. I didn't think that seeing Sting would bring back so many memories. He's just so much like Natsu, you know?"

Yukino smiled. "He'd be happy to hear you say that...a little too happy, I think."

"Here I am ruining the party." Lucy sighed, still palming the moisture away from her cheeks. "Why am I crying?" she asked herself. She'd managed to stop for months, but now all her progress was gone. "I'll never be able to stop now. He," she faltered. "He hated seeing me like this."

"Lucy-sama, it's okay." Yukino reached for a nearby tissue box and handed her a few. "You miss him. You-"

"I begged him," Lucy blurted without preamble, feeling like she would literally combust if she didn't say this after keeping it in for so long. "I begged him not to go that night. He was in no condition. He hadn't been for months."

"Natsu-sama was unwell?" the silver haired mage asked tentatively. If so, this was the first she ever heard of it.

Lucy ran a hand over her face. "Of course he wasn't well. He would leave for months at a time to fight dragons, come back for a day to make sure all of us at the guild were still alive, and then leave again. Sometimes he wouldn't even come to my apartment because he knew I'd try to make him stay longer and recuperate. He had to know at some point that he was making himself sick."

The celestial mage's grew cloudy and wetter yet as she remembered. "After we lost Erza," she sobbed, "and Gray a-and Juvia something snapped in him. He just would not stop hunting dragons. He wasn't eating enough, and he barely slept. He kept blaming himself, because he was a dragon slayer, and our...our family had been killed by dragons. I saw that the guilt was crushing him. It was eating him alive but he wouldn't talk to me about it. I didn't know how to help him!" Her breathing was becoming more shallow now, sobs heavier. "And then came the plan to attack Crocus."

"It wasn't even a bad idea," Lucy admitted. "M-maybe if they were able t-to crush the eclipse gate, all the dragons would have disappeared, but that place was their nest. Him, Laxus, and Gajeel would have had to fight through hundreds of dragons, maybe even thousands to get to it. It was just impossible. And I think they knew that to an extent because they wouldn't let Wendy come, let alone the rest of us. B-but that night before h-he left I hugged him...for so long, and I finally told him that I loved him and begged him to stay with me."

By now, Yukino's heart was breaking just listening to the words her friend had been too traumatized to utter for almost a year. She pulled her friend into the tightest hug she could manage with her belly the size that it was.

"A-and then he said he loved me too," Lucy's voice was a hoarse, broken whisper. "And that that was why he couldn't let me live like this, always afraid. H-he said he was going to end this...and then take me on another adventure."

Yukino closed her eyes and rubbed at the blonde's shaking back. "I'm sure it would have been an amazing adventure."

They were quiet for a spell, and then the next thing out of Lucy's mouth shook Yukino to her core. "Sting has always been a lot like Natsu."

"I know," the silver haired woman lamented.

"Take care of him."

"I will." She was promising herself even more than Lucy that she would not let history repeat this sad story.

**Author's Notes: **Sorry about the strange coding that came up later. I was trying to post here and to my tumblr via iPad and stuff got weird (don't ask me how, I'm in the social sciences lol), but it should be fixed now. Sorry for my delay in posting this chapter, my first few weeks of college have been really intense. I feel that as I become more acclimated to these changes, I'll get a lot better at planning my time. Please be patient with me.

Anyway, thanks for reading, guys!


	4. Chapter 4

**December, X793**

A thick veil of smoke encompassed the town, choking out yet another remnant of the Fiore that once was. Although the buildings had crumbled and streets were littered with the remains of disrupted lives and dragon entrails, the casualties of the day had been minimal.

Lines of people with destruction glazed expressions headed off carrying bundles of clothing, food, loved ones and whatever else made it out alive. The snow tracks of the masses churned blood and virgin snow into a cynical salmon colored slush. There were no homes to return to, but there was a place—a paradise of the damned that ensured they'd never see the winged horrors again.

"More going to Kagura's," Sting observed, prodding at one of his wounds that had re-opened. "Think they're actually safe in there?"

Rogue closed his eyes momentarily, thinking. "Somehow, I do." He didn't even want to know what faulty logic brought him to this conclusion. "The dragons won't attack the safe-houses when there's food out in the open."

Food. Like a carton of take-out left in the office refrigerator without anyone's name scribbled on it.

_That was what humanity had been reduced to._

"We're both out of magic," the shadow dragon slayer pointed out. "We should rest for a day, patrol the west side of the country and then loop back around and head home. That way we'll be back at Sabertooth by next week."

"We could do that," Sting allowed. "Or we could go home now and start out the other way when we leave again."

Rogue glanced at his friend quizzically. "Why would we do that?" It would create more travel time than necessary. But after a moment the pieces started falling into place. He sighed. "When's her due date?"

"Day after tomorrow." At the very least, he wanted to be there for Yukino when the baby came.

Rogue shook his head. It would be incredibly impractical. Then again, so was the idea of running a guild and starting a family as a dragon slayer in a world overrun by dragons. _And_ the idea of a twenty-one year old guild master. Now that he thought about it, he couldn't remember the last time anything about his friend had been even remotely practical.

"Sting," the dark-haired man started, even as they began walking the route that would lead them back home.

"What is it?"

This didn't make any sense. Yukino could have had the baby by now, for all they knew. Heading back without at least checking for more dragons was highly irresponsible. Rogue could have said all this and more, but one sidelong glance told him that his friend was even more spent than he was (if that was even possible) and just wanted to see his woman.

Even in a world gone to hell, nothing made more sense than that.

"Nothing," he replied after a considerable pause. "Let's go see my godchild."

* * *

When Sting reached Yukino's apartment the next day, the first thing that greeted him was the smell of lasagna wafting from the kitchen.

The second was the sight of her, with her slippered feet propped up on the coffee table, diligently working away on a scrapbook of some kind. On the couch next to her was a stack of official looking documents with the Sabertooth insignia printed on them.

He then decided to make his presence known, picking up one of the forms for inspection. "Your handwriting still isn't bad enough," the dragon slayer informed with a smirk.

"Sting-sama!" Her face lit up like a string of Christmas lights. She'd been worried sick about him, but by now Yukino had accepted that as a condition of living. "Are you alright? You must be freezing." She could not fathom how he could take the early December weather, snow and all, in so little clothing.

Sting gave a resigned sigh. Nothing had been able to quell her concerns lately, especially since her friends from Fairy Tail left. "Weather doesn't really affect dragon slayers."

Yukino shook her head at this. "But I'm sure pneumonia does," she cautioned. "At least bring a coat next time," she said in a voice that was gentle, but still fraught with finality.

"Yes, my love," he teased, leaning down to kiss her. After this, Sting sat next to her on the couch and draped an arm across her shoulders. "How have you been, Yukino?"

"Keeping busy." She glanced around the apartment, most of which had been packed neatly into cardboard boxes. "I think we'll be ready to move into the house right before the holidays." Not that anyone still had the luxury of celebrating them.

"You didn't pack all of those yourself, right?" Sting was disquieted by the thought of his very pregnant fiancé straining herself to that extent.

"Libra helped out with most of the lifting," she informed, anticipating his worries. She wouldn't risk doing anything that might hurt their little princess. "How are things out there?"

Sting took a moment to calculate his answer. "There are less dying now. People are getting smarter." Things were different now that society—the remnants of it, anyway—had gotten accustomed to the threat.

The celestial spirit mage nodded shrewdly. "In that case...theoretically, I mean…possibly," she started quietly, trying to decide which way of framing her request would be most effective.

He smirked, finding her antics quite endearing. "What?"

"Then, maybe, it wouldn't be too bad if you took some time off. Maybe a week or two?"

The white dragon slayer ran a hand over his face tiredly. He should have anticipated this. "Yukino, you know-"

"I know you can't go on like this!" she interjected, voice trembling with emotion. "I-I know you want to save everyone, but more people will ultimately be hurt if you keep overworking yourself. If something were to happen to you and Rogue," she closed her eyes and exhaled deeply to steady herself. "The world will be lost." _My world would be lost._

"One week," he conceded, after a pause, "unless there's an emergency."

"Thank you." She turned back to the scrapbook, trying not to let him see the plethora of emotions that were surely playing across her face.

Sting glanced down at her handiwork with interest. "Photo album?"

She shook her head. "It's a baby book." The celestial mage turned to the first page which was only partly filled out.

_Full Name: Emilie Fuyu Sorano Eucliffe _

_Birthdate: December__, X793

_Height:__

_Weight:__

_Mother: Yukino Aguira-Eucliffe _

_Father: Sting Eucliffe_

_Sibling(s): Lector, Frosch (cat siblings—human siblings, TBD) _

_Godmother: Mirajane Strauss _

_Godfather: Rogue Cheney _

"Fuyu." Sting smirked at the small victory.

"I did it for Lector," she insisted, pushing him playfully. She thought they were both entitled to some sentimentality. "Do you like the rest of it?"

"I think it's great." He placed a hand on her rounded belly. "How 'bout it, Em?" There was what seemed like an affirming kick in response.

"What a daddy's girl you are," Yukino commented, looking down at her stomach with an expression of mock-betrayal. Every time he spoke to the baby, every time she heard his voice she started to kick and wiggle around. Even from inside the womb, it was obvious that she already loved him dearly.

Hours later, after the lasagna had been eaten, the baby book worked on, and the paperwork mailed off to what remained of the magic council, Yukino crawled into bed next to her favorite blond.

"What took you so long?" Sting asked in a voice that told her he was more than two-thirds asleep. She was only going to turn off the kitchen light, but she'd gone for ten minutes.

"I had to mop the kitchen."

"Don't…" he rolled over, "push yourself too much, Yukino."

"I'm not." She kissed his cheek. "That's more your area of expertise. But, I had to mop. My water broke in there. If I didn't do it right away, I'd forget and slip in the morning."

"Makes sense…" After his mind took a moment to register what she said, Sting's eyes snapped open. "Your water broke. You're having the kid now!" He sat up immediately.

"No, I'm not." Yukino gently pushed him back down. "The contractions are more than ten minutes apart and I'm not really in pain."

"But-"

"I just spoke to my midwife on the lacrima crystal. She thinks I probably won't be ready to deliver until morning." She buried her face into his chest. "Sleep," the celestial mage said softly. "I'll wake you up if anything changes."

The pair was able to rest for no more than an hour before bad news came to call. "STING-KUN! STING-KUN!" Lector shouted frantically as he flew in through the bedroom window.

Groggily, the pair sat up—Yukino with far more difficulty—and focus on the exceed.

"What is it, Lector?" Sting attempted to sift the annoyance out of his voice.

"It's terrible!" The maroon feline went on. "People are saying there's a group of dragons coming up from the west side! They're only two towns away from here!"

"What?" Yukino exclaimed. Her heart began beating erratically. None of the legions had ever been able to get that close to Sabertooth.

Sting's electric blue eyes widened fractionally as a feeling of unspeakable dread crept into every fiber of his being.

What had he done?

In a split second, he lept from the bed and began pulling on his clothes. "I have to go."

"But your magic. It couldn't have recov—AHH!" she cried out, sentence lost as the first real contraction ripped through her.

"Yukino," Sting turned around just in time to see her pained expression. He knelt beside her, trying to gauge her condition. "Are you…?"

"I'm fine," she lied, after regaining her composure. She was trying not to add more tension to the situation. "Em is just kicking a little bit it's-" Once again the end of her speech was cut off by an anguished cry. "I-it's okay."

"Shit." Sting would not have believed for a second that she wasn't about to have this baby.

"Sting-kun, I think the egg is cracking!" Lector commented.

"Everyone!" Just then Frosch flew in. "Rogue says we have to hurry!"

"Lector," Sting called to his exceed. "Get Rufus and bring him here to Yukino. He'll know what to do. And Frosch, tell Rogue I'll be down in a minute."

The exceeds quickly went about their tasks, leaving the young couple in privacy.

"After this, we'll have our week," Sting promised, taking her hand. "Just you, me, and Emilie."

"Be careful," Yukino managed between the ebb and flow of her waves of pain. She knew that he was exhausted, and that his magic hadn't fully recovered yet. She also knew that this one was a disaster of the inevitable variety.

"Careful? We're the twin dragons of Sabertooth." He grinned at her, just exuding his easy, playful charm. "Strongest in the land. You didn't forget, did ya?"

In that moment she could have fallen for him all over again. His cockiness, his smile, his electric blue eyes made her feel like she could summon the One Magic.

"I-I love you, Sting." Though the words were shaky with her labor pains and frazzled nerves, it was the surest she'd ever been about anything. _Please, please come back to me unharmed._

"I love you, too." He kissed her lips, then her forehead, and then each fluttering eyelid trying to hold back a deluge. "I gotta make this world safe for our kid to live in. I'll be back soon."

_Goodbye, Yukino._

**Author's Notes: **So, now that midterms are over, I can actually write again! A word of caution: the next two chapters or so are going to have some pretty sad moments (I know I've been saying that for a while now, but it's actually coming). The story has been pretty StingYu-centric so far, but there will be A LOT more of Kagura and Mermaid Heel in the upcoming chapters. Anyway, thanks for reading, everyone!


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